25% of Kiwis want New Zealand to be part of Australia!

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Recent studies suggest this may not entirely be so. Attitudes in NZ are shifting, there is less value being put on equality as opposed to the self and getting wealth and status, and more value being put on a high salary/wage because of seniority and heirachy, as opposed to being a hard worker or having a family to support.

In the economic reforms of the 80's and early 90's (rogernomics, the ECA and welfare cutbacks), alot of people suffered financially and were left to fend for themselves, unions were busted, and aid for disadvantaged and those on welfare was chopped. I generally get only NZ$110 after rent to keep myself alive and that's expected to cover electricity, heating, groceries, transport, clothes and more. I have to ask for handouts sometimes. Some others have turned to crime - at least in prison they feed and clothe you, you can struggle for that on welfare.

The "War-generation" is disappearing, and Generation-Y is coming of age. Values based around the community are being replaced by values of the individual. Equality is dropping - NZ is behind the UK and Australia for income equality.

We supposedly have better attitudes to indigenous matters but there is still some discrimination, and maori are disproportionately represented in crime, welfare, and prison statistics. More money for rehabilitation (including drugs and alcohol) would help but the current government wants to spend it on more prisons, including privatised prisons.

You still need a passport to prove you are from New Zealand, or else anyone could fly into NZ, then fly to Oz from NZ without a passport.

I went to Sydney at the beginning of December, and I can use the automatic customs machines that you stick your passport in, it takes a photo of you, then lets you through.

not sure about joining Australia, but NZers can travel freely between the two countries anyway (I assume it is the same the other way around), so I don't see how much difference it will actually make.

Well the National government is failing to keep out heads above water: our GNP Deficit blew out to roughly $11 billion US.

Maybe they shouldn't have cut the companies tax by 1/3 and cut taxes for the rich by over a fifth?

The brain-drain is actually a symptom of poor quality of life and poor wages and opportunities.

I suggest reading "Rescuing the New Zealand Economy" by Brian Gould.

It's the fault of Rogernomics. New Zealand used to be a more cohesive society than Australia. In Australia, they did a better job of protecting the common worker than in post-Rogernomics New Zealand where the suicide rate jumped up.

I think an 'Oceanic Union' of sorts is an inevitability, with Australia, NZ, PNG and the islands sharing a common currency and defence force. Let's be real, it's the defacto situation at the moment. Aus & NZ provide most of the higher education for the region, as well as most of the security.

Loss of soverignty is a serious issue, and it's one we feel down here in Tasmania fairy keenly. We're a poor state and rely on Commonwealth handouts to survive, but having Canberra override decisions (ie, the Franklin Dam) made at the state level only encourages the hand-out mentality.

Anyway, NZ has a distinct culture, but then so does greater Auckland and say, Dunedin. And so does Melbourne compared with Sydney, or with Toowoomba. The UK and US are good examples of conglomerate countries full of diverse and often competing cultures. Cultural preservation is not an argument against a union, in an of itself.

The question would be is how much sovereignty are people willing to surrender for a higher standard of living, and also what value is sovereignty over issues like international economic agreements compared with longer life expectancy etc.